Nepal Quake: Infrastructure Woes and the Need to Build Resilient Cities

Proper planning and infrastructure needed to improve earthquake resilience in the developing world.

Poor infrastructure compound Nepal earthquake tragedy. Photograph courtesy of: European Commission DG/Flickr

The 7.8 magnitude earthquake that shook central and western Nepal on 25th April 2015 is one of the deadliest earthquakes that had rattled the Himalayan country, in the past 80 years.

The disaster is the latest example that illustrates the challenges that developing countries face in reducing vulnerability to natural calamities like earthquakes.

For Nepal, poor infrastructure and spotty code enforcement aggravated the impact of the disaster. Most victims died because of the shoddily constructed houses that collapsed at the first major tremor.

The country ranks 11th in earthquake vulnerability, according to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), a global development body.

Yet, about 90% construction in the country is carried out by heads of household or local masons who traditionally have little or no contact with the engineering community, Amod Mani Dixit of the National Society for Earthquake Technology-Nepal (NSET), revealed in a report. Remaining 10% of the country’s buildings are designed by engineers, added the executive director of the Katmandu-based NGO.

Nepal needs to spend at least four times of its existing expenditure on infrastructure, annually, according to Asian Development Bank, a multilateral finance institution that promotes economic and social progress in the Asia-Pacific region.

However, for a country that currently ranks 157th out of 187 countries on the Human Development Index, the job is easier said than done.

The neighbouring country of India also lies in the zone of high seismicity. The country is tackling with unbridled construction and infrastructure that compromises on structural safety standards.

At least 38 Indian cities lie in high-risk seismic zones, according to an IndiaSpend research. About 60% of the subcontinental landmass is vulnerable to earthquakes, the data journalism project’s report added.

The country is witnessing myriad high-rise commercial and residential building projects sprouting everywhere. Cities are bursting at the seams with unauthorised colonies further compounding the problem.

Factors like urbanisation and shrinking availability of land are inducing developers to go for high rises.

Despite being located in seismic zone IV, Delhi is witnessing unbriddled construction since past few years. Photograph courtesy of: Ville Miettinen/Flickr

Experts have highlighted that, often, these constructions do not meet the basic requirements of the structural designs and building codes, making the high-rises susceptible to strong tremors.

Currently, the capital city of Delhi alone, has close to 2,000 illegal colonies, which are in different stages of regularisation. These colonies house close to 50 million people.

Delhi and half of the National Capital Region (NCR) region sit atop Seismic Zone IV, making it vulnerable to earthquakes that can go up to 8-magnitude, warned the experts.

“Poor planning increases the impact of the disaster as people have practically no space to run when a calamity strikes,” explained Yasir Khan, a Delhi-based builder and architect.

“Rescue and relief efforts come during and after a disaster has struck. What we need to focus on is better planning and improved infrastructure to mitigate the impact of the disaster“ said Priyanka Lingwal, a Mayur Vihar resident. The trans-Yamuna colony is located a top a Zone IV fault.

“All structure drawings have to be approved by the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) to ensure that they are earthquake resistant,” said Yasir Khan.

While there are enough regulations in place, the system lacks a robust mechanism that can ensure the implementation of these design codes in constructions.

“There are enough codes and practices published by the Bureau of Indian Standard BIS on how to design earthquake-resistant structures. But implementation is an issue” said the President of Indian Associations of Structural Engineers, Mahesh Tandon, in an interview to an Indian daily.

“It is the job of structural engineers to give proper shape and form to a building… But structural engineers are rarely involved in the overall design, planning and construction of the building,” he added.

The Delhi Metro is one of the rare exceptions amongst Indian structures that are well-equipped to withstand a quake.

“The girders of the metro system have four layered concrete and a thick layer of reinforced tough rubber, below the girder, to absorb the shock,” explained Priyanshu Mishra, a Delhi Metro intern.

“The latest trains have intelligent TIMS system that makes a train halt at a particular mainline if there’s any tremor. All the trains can then be diverted to the depot,” he added.

Renovating old buildings is also part of the challenge. There is a need to retrofit existing buildings to make them safer. There are around 25 million such buildings in Delhi alone.

Other Asian countries like Bhutan and Japan can serve as models to look up in terms of quake preparedness.

“Bhutan appears to have been more receptive to ideas for reducing earthquake risks than has Nepal,” noted Brian Tucker, President of GeoHazards International, in a news report.

“The tiny nation has a population of just under 750,000, compared with Nepal’s 26.5 million. And its government has been more stable. Its per capita GDP also is three times higher than that of Nepal,” he added.

“Japanese anti-quake construction technology places a premium on high performance,” said Hiroaki Takahashi, Associate Professor of Seismology, Hokkaido University, Japan, in a media article.

“However, such construction is more expensive than an ordinary building. Therefore, cost-effective solutions are also a challenge,” he added.